Debate contribution: Coronavirus Act 2020 (Extension of Provisions Relating to Live Links for Courts and Tribunals) (No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2023

Debate contribution by Mrs Naomi Long on 11 March 2024.

MLA

Mrs Naomi Long

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

11 March 2024

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Executive Committee Business

Heading

Coronavirus Act 2020 (Extension of Provisions Relating to Live Links for Courts and Tribunals) (No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2023

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4269545

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you to the Members who participated in the debate for their contributions. The near-universal consensus of the Assembly is that we would have preferred to do this by primary legislation but recognise that it is important that we are able to maintain the provisions while that legislation is being developed. I will touch on a number of issues. The question was asked, particularly by the Chair, about why this could not be done more quickly through having a stand-alone live links Bill. Unfortunately, unlike the Department for Communities, which has now ceased using Coronavirus Act (CVA) provisions to facilitate hybrid council meetings and is doing that through regulation, we have no other primary legislation in the justice field that would allow us to introduce similar secondary legislation. It has to be done by primary legislation and therefore will take considerable time. We also need to accommodate it alongside other legislative requirements that the Department faces. I would prefer it if new primary provision for live links were in place sooner rather than later, but the reality is that we have another shortened mandate in which to push through legislation, plus a backlog of legislative changes from the previous mandate that still need to be progressed. I have therefore approved a legislative programme for my Department that will allow us to progress those outstanding legislative changes through a mixed-content justice Bill, as well as delivering on my legislative priorities of a sentencing Bill and a hate crime Bill. I would much prefer to have a series of smaller thematic Bills, but the reality is that we do not have time to do that in this mandate; I wish it were otherwise, but that is where we are. I also want to make sure that the legislation that we introduce is robust, future-proofed and takes account of learning from the past few years. It is not simply a question of replicating what was in the Coronavirus Act and turning it into primary legislation; it is a more complex piece of work. For example, we have consulted publicly and had .significant engagement with stakeholders, and, as the Deputy Chair mentioned, we have kept abreast of developments in other jurisdictions. We aim to share the draft clauses with the Justice Committee in time for them to be considered during the Committee Stage of the justice Bill. I will write to the Committee well in advance of that to set out the policy approach that we will adopt. I reiterate that we want there to be proper scrutiny of the legislation. We want the opportunity to engage with the sector, and we want what we produce to be robust. In the interim, however, it is important that we get this extension and future extensions that will guide us through to the point at which the new legislation is in place. To lose live links would not only set back the recovery of the justice system and slow down the delivery of justice; it would represent an impediment to many of the more vulnerable victims and witnesses who participate in the justice system. In certain categories of domestic abuse cases, for example, it would place back in the defendant's hands power over whether remote access to the court is allowed. That would be a regressive step, given how far we have proceeded on that over recent years. I hope that I have answered any questions that Members have and satisfied them of the importance of the order being approved today. As Members, we often hear victims and witnesses comment that the criminal justice system does not focus on them or work well for them. I want to reassure Members that this motion is particularly targeted at making the journey of those victims and witnesses through the justice system as stress-free as can be, to make a positive difference to them, to help us to address the challenges presented to the justice system over recent years, to contribute to the modernisation of our courts and to ensure the smart use of the resources that are available to us. I thank Members for their support.

688 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 09:47 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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